Quick Update

Weighed in last Thursday...to my surprised I was down 1.5lbs. I was so excited! What a great feeling. I was able to enjoy my Friday and Saturday away.
Looking forward to being back on track on Sunday.

Thursday...

Today is the day that we weigh in...a day that I look forward to and see the outcomeof the week, but then there is that part of me that doesn't want to go -thinking back at some of the things I ate and maybe shouldn't of. I think, it will e alright if I gain b/c Friday is a start to a whole new week, new flex points, a clean slate and excited to try harder.
It is pretty funny how I can find excuses on why I didn't lose..."It was my time of the month", "I was kind of stressed and I eat when I am stresses". " I was busy", or even " I just didn't care this week".
But this week wasn't like that. It was a change for me but I was thinking more positive and was actually proud of myself and wasn't putting myself down... This past Monday my sister and I took my Mom out for her birthday for breakfast at the Sunset Grill. I looked online for nutritional value on the food to prepare and figure out what I could have. They didn't have any values but I did find a "light Breakfast" menu. As much as I wanted the french toast with Whip Cream or the Greek Omelette with homefries, I chose the one egg, 2 slices of toast and a bowl of fruit. Now on paper it all looked great and I was ready to go...but when I get to a restaurant, reasoning goes out the window and I give in. But for some reason I stood by my choice and ordered what I planned on. It was so good and satisfying. I walked out of the restaurant feeling full and satisfied. I was so proud of myself.
I did the same thing yesterday when I was out with Jade for lunch...It would of been nice to have a chicken burger but I ordered the yogurt parfiat and loved it. Now I was a bit hungery when I got home but I enjoyed a big bowl of chili and enjoyed having cheese with it b/c I didn't blow it at lunch.
Now I can chalk it up to it was just a good week or I could really say and believe that I am getting a bit more willpower and my eyes are shrinking as my stomach shrinks.
I think when I weigh in tonight that even if I don't loose I can still pat myself on the back and stay I had a great week. I learned something. I HAVE THE POWER TO SUCESSED AT THIS! ONE POUND AT A TIME AND ONE STEP AT A TIME.

Beginning Again

January 14th began a new journey...one that I have been on many times before...losing weight. It is something I have struggled with all my life...it has bothed me but sometimes more than others. It really doesn't help having very skinny siblings and parents. Who knows why I was designed like this but I have learned over years to love who I am. I did not want to change for anyone. When I met Brad, he loved me just the way I was. Loved every bit of me.
When I decided to join weight watchers again I was doing this for myself, not for anyone else. Brad has joined me on this journey and we were going to do this for ourselves. We wanted to set a realistic goal so we joined for 20 weeks so it would not be to over whelming.
I gave myself a goal to acheive at the end of the week with 40lbs lost. It works out to be 2lbs a week.
I won't write my starting weight but I will keep you up date on what I have lost

Week 1 lost 2lbs
Week 2 lost 3lbs
Week 3 lost 2lbs
Week 4 lost .5lbs
Week 5 lost 3lbs
Week 6 lost 1.5lbs
Week 7 lost 2lbs

S0 as of today, I have lost 14lbs. I have lost 5% of my weight and am so happy.

Every week is different for the one before, some with more challenges than others. Sometimes I don't have to eat out and am able to stick to my points and have a great week and then there are other weeks where I use every point I have.

As for this week, it have been pretty good. It has been "that time of month" which doesn't help at all, but over all I think it has been pretty managable.

Thursday evening are the weight ins and having a friend with me makes it a lot more enjoyable.

Well, it is time for my evening snack I look forward to all day...Popcorn and Fresca with no kids interupting me or begging me for some.

Enjoy Life Pt. 1

It has been long since my last blog. Life has just been so busy and filled with so much love, laughter, family moments and so much more. What has happend in the 6 months well, let's start with Brad and his business and then we will get to the girls.

Brad and Chris (brother in law/partner) have been working hard to get these two new clinics up and running which means alot of hours spent at the office and on the computer. When these clinics launch Brad and Chris are on call 24/7 fixing anything that is not up to par for these clinics.
Even though theses are busy weeks, when they are all up and running smoothly life goes on and we enjoy the benifits of all there hard work. Able to pay off some debt, help our family out, fix up things around the house and even take a weekend trip or two. God truely has blessed Brad and Chris' business. But while these clinics were being launched, Chris sold the building where the office is. This is a answer to prayers for Wendy and Chris...this gives them a chance to pay off the debt to the building and even start looking for a place of there own. In the selling of the building this means we have 6 months to find a new office space. So with the hunt for a new office space means more changes for us.
The location for the office will depend on the location Wendy and Chris find a house. They are looking north-Thornton, Cookstown, Essa, Baxter...so where ever they go, the office will be close. The office needs to be close to the highway for easy commutes for Chris but not too far from the house too.
With the business moving north and Wendy and Chris heading north who knows where God will lead our family...We love to be close to Wendy and Chris and close to work, it just makes it easier for Brad...will moving north be somewhere in the future? Who Knows?

Lessons in the Kitchen

As I sit here blogging, all i hear from the kitchen is groans, slamming of cupboards and mumbling under brad's breath. Another recipe that didn't turn out!!! Brad tried to make a pulled pork dinner. It didn't work out. Was it the meat? Was it the type of cooking proceedure or ingredients? Who knows? This is not the first time thought. Brad has tryed twice to cook a whole chicken on the BBQ and it didn't turn out they way we wanted it too and tryed to make ribs which ended up being so spicy that we had to scrape off the seasoning to get to the meat..
But Brad's cooking adventures aren' the only failures. Since we have moved in I have burnt muffins, messed up the 2nd half of making Jam, Beef stew didn't cook properly and had a pot roast not fit in the crock pot. Now for me I think this cooking thing should come naturally. As it seem it is what a stay at home mom should be good at.
But then I look at it this way... I haven't cooked in 5 years. I have new appliances that I have to get use to, and I have two young kids that take up alot of my attention when I am in the kitchen.
I have this idea in my head though of a wife in the kitchen, kids playing in the other room, husband coming home from work to this wonderful cooked meal. But in my life right now it is me throwing some meat in the oven, can of veggies on the stove and some minute rice for the side dish with Julia and Jade yelling at each other, brad coming home to the pot of rice boiling over, tripping over toys and me yelling at the girls yelling...Yup that is reality.

SO what can i take from this little adventure in the kitchen? Well I think it is going to take some time to find my style of cooking. The 5 cource meal is a few years away, and as long as my family is feed my something half decent, then, all it good!

Bon Appite!

Making Jam

I was so excited to go strawberry picking with Julia and some friends. Could I make my own jam??? Well sure, we have our own kitchen, we can do what we want...YAHHHHH

Early Friday morning we dropped Jade off at Oma's and headed up to Visser Farms. Julia was so happy to be out with just Mommy and with Cadence(her friend). We took a large, medium and small basket and were sure that we would fill them all. Mommy filled most of them but Julia did a very good job for her first time.

We headed home and thought maybe we will spend the day on Saturday and make jam then, but then my mother in law needed my camera so we had to make it Friday night so we could take pictures.

We were so happy to be able to make this memory together as mother & daughter. We bought Julia her own apron so we could be twins in the kitchen. I washed all the strawberries and called Julia when it was time to mash the berries. I though, WOW this is easy and then I noticed...we didn't have lemon juice, I am almost out of sugar and wow...i need more jars...it makes more than I thought. So I sent Brad out to pick up supplies.

Once we made the 1st batch, we felt like pros. We had such a system when we made the jam. I filled them and wiped the jars down and Julia put the lids on and stacked them neatly on the counter. She was so proud of her accomplishment and so was I. We couldn't wait to taste it!

The next day we headed out again for some more supplies to make the rest of the jam. Grabbed the pectin, jars, and more sugar and back into the kitchen I went.

Thinking I was a pro at this i glanced at the instructions and the way i went. I made 16 more jars and tidied up the kitchen.

As I glanced at the newly batch of jam i noticed they didn't look the same but thinking...maybe they were riper berries I sat down to Facebook. As I looked at my friends status, she commented on my jam making and she stated that she messed hers up b/c she didn't boil the water & pectin, I sighed and then it hit me...

I too did not boil the water with the pectin. That is why it looked separated. All the pectin was at the bottom and the berries and sugar was at the top.

I was so upset...here I thought i was such a pro already...then my supportive husband that he is had an idea to separate the jam and pectin in two bowls and add the missing water and boil it with pectin and then mix it with the berries and jar them again.

Well at least this was the way we fixed it...we will see how it turns out in a day or two but any way it will sure taste good on toast or ice cream.

What will be next in our adventures in the kitchen...WHO KNOWS?

Our Move

Alright, it has been over a month since I last posted but I have had a good reason. We finally moved to a home that is ours. Thing went very smoothly.

A few days before we moved i was talking to my sister in law and we were looking at all of our boxes downstairs...boy did we have alot of stuff...maybe we should rent a truck or something? We were planning on doing it with two trailers, two minivans and maybe another truck or something...we don't need a truck? Well, it would make me feel better if we had a truck, just in case...so I called Brad at work and he booked a 24' u-haul truck and we were ready to pick it up on Moving Day.

Thursday, May 28th, we headed off to the lawyers to sign all the papers. Boy, I have never signed my name so much. Everyone was so friendly and very interested in our little story on how we were finally moving to our own home after living with 7 other people for 5 yrs. Now to wait til the next day to get the key. He said that it could be 10am or 4pm that he would have the key...her really didn't know. Oh we will be so busy with moving that the wait will be fine.

Friday, May 29th, The day had come...moving to our home. We left at 7am and grabbed breakfast at mcdonalds with the girls and then headed to pick up the moving truck at 8am.

We headed home to start the loading.
Dad was at the house already tearing down the walls for us to get our bed, couch, lazyboy, and other items out...plus wendy needed the walls down for her stuff too so leave it to Dad to just take down the walls.

We began packing at 9am with the help of our great friend Chris who just came form an overnight shift but he was so willing to help. The guys just made an assembly line and loaded that truck. I really didn't think we would fill that truck up so full. I knew we had a lot of stuff but not to fill a moving truck, our mini van, dad's mini van, and his trailer...plus all the stuff from Gramma's which was all my kitchen items. But who cared...we were moving. We were done packing by 12pm. NO call yet about the key so we sat down to have lunch and just do some last minute clean up...around 1pm still no call and I was starting to go nuts so I left and did some shopping for the house...when I am done, we will get the call right...NOPE. Not til 4:00pm did we get the call!.

FINALLY MOVING IN!

We loaded up the girls in wendy's van, Dad and Chris headed up to the house and I called Gramma and Gramps & Mom and Dad to head up to the house as well... we will all meet there at 5pm.

Brad and I headed to the office to pick up the key...here I thought this was going to be this big thing but all they did was hand us this envelope with the key in it...oh well it is the key to our house so I won;t get picky.

Finally. We had the key to our house...now to unpack...I was so tired so I was hoping my second wind would kick in...it was going to be a long night.

We drove up to our house and there was the whole family waiting to get in. The one thing I wanted though was to walk into the house as a family...There we were at our door ready to walk into the house...

Turing the key and seeing the empty house ready to be filled with our stuff ready to make it ours! Brad actually carried me over the threshold of the house which was really sweet.

The House got very busy. The guys were loading every thing into the garage and the only items to come into the house were the beds and suitcases with clothes, couches and kitchen stuff.

Mom and I got the girls bedrooms set up so the girls could sleep comfortablly tonight.

Gramma set up my kitchen very well I might add...I didn't even have to move things the way I liked b/c she did a great job...well while the kitchen and bed rooms were being set up we hear..OH NO...

That is right...our queen size boxspring didnt fit up the stair well. No matter who tryed, it still wouldn't fit. So we had to buy a new split queen size boxspring later that week so we could sleep off the ground.

By 9:30pm the trucks we unloaded, couches were in and the girls were asleep in there rooms.

The smiths and hilborns left around 8pm so my family ordered pizza and just kind of relaxed and enjoyed the new house.

Brad and I stayed up til 11pm to set up the t.v and satalite for the kids in the morning.

Over all, the move went so well. We were finally in our own home...who knows what the next day will go. Or how the unpacking will go. Only time will tell.

BED TIME for us.